Tag - Police

The Philadelphia police department has been caught disguising a van equipped with sophisticated surveillance technology as a Google Streetview van, reports Motherboard. Instead of the regular cameras fitted to a Google Streetview vehicle, the surveillance vehicle was fitted with ALPR gear that uses infrared cameras to identify and process multiple license plates simultaneously, and almost instantaneously. When contacted about the van, the department disavowed the method that had been used to disguise the vehicle, stating that it had not been formally authorized by senior management, and an internal investigation has been initiated.

We were ready to go all profound – wait, that is different from profane, isn't it? –– over what's been happening with William Gallagher's beloved TextExpander. Before we'd opened our gobs, though, makers Smile Software walked back a lot of the problems and reacted to its customers in a way that you can only applaud. So well done them and we are pleased, but we had a great pun ready for you with the word 'TextExpander'.

Police in London are trialing the use of cameras worn on officers, in an attempt to speed up convictions, as well as increasing transparency in the police force. 500 units of the camera, a Taser Axon Body model, have been supplied to members of the Metropolitan Police working across 10 London boroughs for the one-year pilot, with firearm officers also said to be using them in training.

One of the largest police departments in the United States is said to be experimenting with Google Glass as a way to give officers more tools in the field. The New York Police Department is looking into the idea of the everyday use of the device for widespread law enforcement applications; something of a reversal compared to how other law enforcement organizations currently handle the device.

The New York Police Department is taking the unusual step of asking people to upgrade their devices to iOS 7. NYPD officers have been spotted handing out fliers to people on the streets, telling users to download iOS 7 onto their iPhones and iPads, due to the introduction of Apple's new "Activation Lock" security feature.

The family of a 9-year-old file sharer in Finland was raided by police earlier this week. The seizure of equipment, including a Disney-branded laptop owned by the child, followed after the family's refusal to abide to Finnish anti-piracy group CIAPC's demands, and has now led to the musical artist to speak out against the legal action.

Researchers are working on robotic members of the police force. The Discovery Lab of Florida International University is working with the US Navy Reserves on building telepresence robots, controlled by disabled police officers and members of the armed forces, that could be used to police the streets, according to CNET.

The New York Police Department and Microsoft have constructed a supercomputer to help fight crime. Costing between $30 and $40 million to create, the Domain Awareness System (DAS) uses a combination of CCTV, license plate readers, police reports, and live incident reports to track criminals and help protect the city from potential threats such as terrorist attacks.

Israeli Border Police allegedly destroyed a MacBook Pro owned by Lily Sussman, a student and US citizen who was recently interrogated while crossing from Egypt into Israel, according to her blog. The guards thoroughly searched Sussman's belongings while asking questions about people she knows, where she is traveling, her stance on the local conflicts, and her family, among other things.

Sandisk on Tuesday introduced the "WORM," or "Write Once Read Many" SD card for professional uses such as storing evidence in police investigations, court testimony, medical records and electronic voting. Sandisk claims original data written to WORM cards are "effectively locked" and there is "no physical way to alter or delete the files." If stored properly, the company claims, WORM SD cards have an archive live of up to 100 years.

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Cirrus creates Lightning-headphone dev kit

Apple supplier Cirrus Logic has introduced a MFi-compliant new development kit for companies interested in using Cirrus' chips to create Lightning-based headphones, which -- regardless of whether rumors about Apple dropping the analog headphone jack in its iPhone this fall -- can offer advantages to music-loving iOS device users. The kit mentions some of the advantages of an all-digital headset or headphone connector, including higher-bitrate support, a more customizable experience, and support for power and data transfer into headphone hardware. Several companies already make Lightning headphones, and Apple has supported the concept since June 2014. http://bit.ly/29giiZj

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Apple Store app offers Procreate Pocket

The Apple Store app for iPhone, which periodically rewards users with free app gifts, is now offering the iPhone "Pocket" version of drawing app Procreate for those who have the free Apple Store app until July 28. Users who have redeemed the offer by navigating to the "Stores" tab of the app and swiping past the "iPhone Upgrade Program" banner to the "Procreate" banner have noted that only the limited Pocket (iPhone) version of the app is available free, even if the Apple Store app is installed and the offer redeemed on an iPad. The Pocket version currently sells for $3 on the iOS App Store. [32.4MB]

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Porsche adds CarPlay to 2017 Panamera

Porsche has added a fifth model of vehicle to its CarPlay-supported lineup, announcing that the 2017 Panamera -- which will arrive in the US in January -- will include Apple's infotainment technology, and be seen on a giant 12.3-inch touchscreen as part of an all-new Porsche Communication Management system. The luxury sedan starts at $99,900 for the 4S model, and scales up to the Panamera Turbo, which sells for $146,900. Other vehicles that currently support CarPlay include the 2016 911 and the 2017 models of Macan, 718 Boxster, and 718 Cayman. The company did not mention support for Google's corresponding Android Auto in its announcement. http://bit.ly/295ZQ94

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Apple employees testing wheelchair features

New features included in the forthcoming watchOS 3 are being tested by Apple retail store employees, including a new activity-tracking feature that has been designed with wheelchair users in mind. The move is slightly unusual in that, while retail employees have previously been used to test pre-release versions of OS X and iOS, this marks the first time they've been included in the otherwise developer-only watchOS betas. The company is said to have gone to great lengths to modify the activity tracker for wheelchair users, including changing the "time to stand" notification to "time to roll" and including two wheelchair-centric workout apps. http://bit.ly/2955JDa

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SanDisk reveals two 256GB microSDXC cards

SanDisk has introduced two 256GB microSDXC cards. Arriving in August for $150, the Ultra microSDXC UHS-I Premium Edition card offers transfer speeds of up to 95MB/s for reading data. The Extreme microSDXC UHS-I card can read at a fast 100MB/s and write at up to 90MB/s, and will be shipping sometime in the fourth quarter for $200. http://bit.ly/294Q1If

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Apple's third-quarter results due July 26

Apple has advised it will be issuing its third-quarter results on July 26, with a conference call to answer investor and analyst queries about the earnings set to take place later that day. The stream of the call will go live at 2pm PT (5pm ET) via Apple's investor site, with the results themselves expected to be released roughly 30 minutes before the call commences. Apple's guidance for the quarter put revenue at between $41 billion and $43 billion. http://apple.co/1oi1Pbm

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Twitter stickers slowly roll out to users

Twitter has introduced "stickers," allowing users to add extra graphical elements to their photos before uploading them to the micro-blogging service. A library of hundreds of accessories, props, and emoji will be available to use as stickers, which can be resized, rotated, and placed anywhere on the photograph. Images with stickers will also become searchable with viewers able to select a sticker to see how others use the same graphic in their own posts. Twitter advises stickers will be rolling out to users over the next few weeks, and will work on both the mobile apps and through the browser. http://bit.ly/29bbwUE